Playstation 3 - Four years away

[MadMike]

September 6, 2002
Sony Sheds Light on Fully-Networked PlayStation 3
By Thor Olavsrud
Sony, which has continued to paint convergence as the grail of the consumer electronics industry, has shed a bit of light on the future PlayStation 3 game console, a fully-networked device that could be capable of delivering as much processing power as a supercomputer by dividing tasks among networked machines.

Reuters Friday reported that a Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) spokesperson said the company is not thinking about hardware when it comes to the next-generation console. Instead, he said, the ideal solution would involve an operating system common to various home appliances, allowing them to run game programs.

The game console is likely to hit the market in 2005, when a powerful new microprocessor, currently in joint development by SCE, Toshiba and IBM, is expected to be ready. Code-named Cell, the microprocessor is based on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology and other IBM materials advances. It is intended as a high-performance, low-power chip applicable to everything from digital consumer applications to supercomputers.

In April, when the three partners unveiled the four-year project, they said they will spend several hundred million dollars to develop new process technologies for building chips with features as small as 50 nanometers on 300 mm wafers. The new processes are expected to incorporate copper wiring, SOI transistors and "low-k" insulation.

Cell, for example, would be capable of transmitting high-resolution moving pictures. Reuters noted that while SCE has not yet decided how to integrate the Cell processor in the PlayStation 3, the idea is to incorporate the chip in Internet servers and home electronics, allowing networked machines to divide computing tasks, thereby delivering as much processing power as a supercomputer.

The strategy has already been in motion at Sony for some time. Both Sony and its new-found competitor in the game console space, Microsoft, have been betting that game consoles will evolve beyond being just game boxes to become the central hubs of home entertainment systems. Today's consoles already play CDs and DVDs, and are just starting to go online, allowing users to surf the Web and send e-mail and instant messages. Next-generation consoles are expected to offer personal video recorder (PVR) capabilities and possibly video-on-demand (VoD) functions.

On Thursday, Sony unveiled a joint project with Philips Electronics to develop ultra short-range radio technology, similar to Bluetooth, which will allow electronics devices to communicate wirelessly. The PlayStation 3 is also likely to incorporate the CoCoon technology Sony revealed Wednesday, under which Sony plans to equip televisions, PCs, game consoles and mobile devices with large hard drives, making them capable of digitally storing and playing back movies and music.

Last year, Sony forged alliances with AOL Time Warner, RealNetworks and Cisco Systems, providing the PlayStation 2 with access to a Web browser, instant messaging client, e-mail client, RealPlayer 8 technology and an IPv4/IPv6 dual protocol stack.

Source: Internetnews (http://www.internetnews.com/infra/article.php/10796_1458181)

[gummy]

well horahhhhh for playstation ......
take a closer look at teh future xbox and then come give us that babble about 'the mighty ' playstation 3 ......X(

X( X( X( X( X(

[djsimonmann]

Very Interesting Mike.. :)

Gummy, GET A LIFE.

[ScottLidbury]

I hate this shit! I've hust bought a ps2 and now there talking about the new one! Typical!...

[Caliber]

*yawwwwwnnnn*

in summary,

- Sony plan a PS3
- PS3 will have network abilities
- Sony are developing a chip with other elecontonic manufacturers
- the same chip in the PS3 will be in your microwave and dishwasher.

whip 'em, Sony! whip those drooling masses into a frenzy!

ast year, Sony forged alliances with AOL Time Warner, RealNetworks and Cisco Systems, providing the PlayStation 2 with access to a Web browser, instant messaging client, e-mail client, RealPlayer 8 technology and an IPv4/IPv6 dual protocol stack.

if we see any of these techs used within PS2 in the next few years ill be amazed given there letharhic approach to anything networked. a good investment for PS3 maybe when up against MS's arsenal of native apps.

[SpaceMonkey]

Hmm, no new console til 2005? Given the rate that they've advanced in the last 3 years isn't the PS2 going to look pretty pathetic compared to what a cutting edge PC is going to provide by then? In fact I'd say that even an entry level PC will be way in front of PS2 capabilities by then. By comparison because of the way it is designed, I imagine that it will be pretty easy for MS and NVidia to release a more powerful XBox in a year or two, given that the only major engineering involved would be for NVdia to desgn a new graphics core (which they will be able to borrow from NV30 anyway) Other than that all they need todo is replace the PIII with a P4 CPU (not too huge a task) and put a bigger HDD/more RAM in (easy). Could all leave Sony a fair way behind come 2004.... still its all in the marketing...

[nexus-6]

good point spacemonkey, but that's assuming we've already seen everything the ps2 can do. i think sony have a good few more tricks up their sleeve, expecially considering some of the new games being released (i.e. FFXI).

[Funksta]

Originally posted by nexus-6
good point spacemonkey, but that's assuming we've already seen everything the ps2 can do. i think sony have a good few more tricks up their sleeve, expecially considering some of the new games being released (i.e. FFXI).

you have the right idea there... before the PS2 was released Sony were pitching to my company that there will be broadband access (we all know that) as well as an external hard drive, more ram, an attachable LCD screen and wireless control pads. All of them will sit in another box similar to the PS2 that straps onto the side.

God only knows what they have decided to develop since then!!

[Tristan]

fuck me, all i want is for the thing to play cool games!8-)

[double_j]

Yeah

I hired one of the early release games for Ps2 the other night and I was amazed at how sub standard it was compared to games at the moment.

But as you pointed out - I'm not sure if the game designers were constrained by the capabilities of the PS or something else, like time, money etc

[Orfeo]

didn't someone crap on about how quickly the ps3 was going to come out?....like months and months ago when ppl were still arguing over the ps2 vs xbox thing?....they were saying something like it was going to come out in a year or two.,,,,,anyway...they were wrong!@!...take that :)


orfeo

[XBenX]

i have to wait that long ?

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally posted by Funksta


you have the right idea there... before the PS2 was released Sony were pitching to my company that there will be broadband access (we all know that) as well as an external hard drive, more ram, an attachable LCD screen and wireless control pads. All of them will sit in another box similar to the PS2 that straps onto the side.

God only knows what they have decided to develop since then!!
I heard some of that too, problem is half of these things never seem to come to fruition. Not much of that stuff (apart from the extra RAM) would really allow the ps2 to produce better games though, it may make them look better or load faster, or allow different play modes but that would be about it.
The point that people are making about us not having seen the best a coinsole can offer is true for PCs as well, I doubt we've seen even half of what a Radeon 9700 or even Geforce 3/4 based setup is capable of doing (given DX9 isn't even out yet). Software developers are always a bit behind the hardware people when it comes to fully exploiting capabilities, I remember when most of the old computers/consoles such as the Amiga/Master system/C64 came out nobody would've dreamed of the stuff that programmers managed to sqeeze out of them by the time they became obsolete. The problem is these days new hardware hits the market so fast that a product is obsolete before it's capabilities have been fully exploited.

[sofu]

three years? fuck that. I'll wait for the PS4.

[borrisGLOWSTICK]

Originally posted by gummy
well horahhhhh for playstation ......
take a closer look at teh future xbox and then come give us that babble about 'the mighty ' playstation 3 ......X(

X( X( X( X( X(


*cough cough shitbox cough cough*

yeah that halo's a pretty good game,so whens xbox gonna release another decent game?

and by the way goldeneye is still the best console shoot em up

[Robbie 49]

Wasn't halo made for pc and mac (by Bungee) first anyways and Bill gates just bought it out so the X box would have one good game.

Playstation 3 that's going to be insane!

[borrisGLOWSTICK]

i hated halo by the way, slight sarcasem on the net dosnt really do any good on the net:p

[Caliber]

Wasn't halo made for pc and mac (by Bungee) first anyways and Bill gates just bought it out so the X box would have one good game.

uhuh. kind of like the same way Sony have an exclusive contract on GTA. the game that sorta got the PS2 halfway where it is today.

not exactly a new tactic, sherlock.

Playstation 3 that's going to be insane!

ugh. im sure you'll be first in line :tripping:

[innA]

Originally posted by borrisGLOWSTICK
*cough cough shitbox cough cough*

yeah that halo's a pretty good game,so whens xbox gonna release another decent game?

and by the way goldeneye is still the best console shoot em up


even tho im pro-xbox i wondered the same thing for a long time. but now there is Halo, RallySport, Madden 2003, Morrowind, Tony Hawk 4, Tiger Woods 2003, Deathrow, Splinter Cell, Hitman 2, etc etc that are all out or close to coming out. they are really starting to get their ass into gear.

if sony wait till 2005 for the ps3, it will no doubt look prehistoric. i would guarantee they will have something new out soon, or xbox would be too far ahead graphically.

[matt_083]

playstation 3 sounds like its gonna rock and eat its competition 4 brekky :offchops: ;D